Town artist finds his own niche
GREENWICH — Jeff Damberg’s mother placed him in front of the television with a pencil and sheet of paper at age 2 to watch Jon Gnagy, an artist who was famous in the 1950s for his show that included art instruction.
As Gnagy drew lines on his white canvas, Damberg followed along, creating his own version of the artwork. By the end of the TV segment, the 2-year-old had made a picture of a log cabin and a pine tree covered in snow.
“She was a parent that wanted to help their child in whatever talents they might be able to develop,” Damberg said in an interview at his Greenwich home.
That marked the begin
ning of Damberg’s long career as an artist. But first he had to overcome a few obstacles.
His father, “the hardestworking person you would ever meet,” believed there was no such thing as a working artist and thought sons should take over their family businesses. But that was not an option for Damberg, who lives with dyslexia and could not read until he was 19 or 20.
“It left me between a rock and a hard place,” said Damberg, now 69. “No one really understood dyslexia, so it’s been terribly frustrating.”
He struggled in core subjects but excelled in art. In fourth grade, his classmates were impressed by a portrait he made of his school principal at Julian Curtiss School.
But when he turned 16 and still could not read, Damberg’s teachers sent him for an IQ test. He performed lowest on the writing portion but still managed to score 138 points, which put him in the gifted range. The proctor told Damberg’s parents that their son was just lazy and that’s why he couldn’t read.
“That’s when I dropped out of school,” said Damberg, who attended Cherry Lawn School in Darien.
But he eventually finished his education and began focusing on art, earning a scholarship to attend Lyme Academy of Fine Arts in Old Lyme.
After graduating, Damberg struggled to sell his paintings and ended up becoming a copyist — an artist who imitates the style of others. But his life changed when he met the then-owner of the New York Graphic Society, Herbert Schutz, who hired Damberg to do repair jobs. “That’s kind of what got me started,” he said.
He honed his craft and became an accomplished art conservator, repairing sculptures, murals and fine art. His specialty is fixing broken pieces of stone and marble sculptures, where he often replaces missing arms and noses, for example, he said as he stood in his mini-studio in his living room.
When he’s not restoring art, Damberg spends his spare time painting and sculpting. He has worked with art collectors and interior designers — and has even painted murals in private homes, according to his website. To date, he has successfully completed more than 300 fine art commissions, he said.
Also, Damberg has written a manuscript he hopes to publish called, “The Impressionists’ Palette: How to Begin an Impressionist Painting.” The lessons are aimed at educating other serious artists about the popular 19thcentury painting style.
Anthony Johnson, CEO of the Greenwich Housing Authority, met Damberg a few years ago and was immediately impressed by his work. He said the people at Greenwich Communities, formerly known as the Greenwich Housing Authority, are proud of Damberg, who lives at Agnes Morley, a public housing complex for people age 62 and older.
Damberg grew up on the same street where he lives now, Johnson said.
“We’ve lived in many different places, but now, I guess I’m back home,” Damberg added.
Accessibility to public housing in a wealthy community, such as Greenwich, gives people who have been priced out of their homes the opportunity to stay in their hometown, Johnson said.
And Damberg agreed, saying his housing arrangement in Greenwich gives him access to job opportunities in Manhattan. If he were living in upstate Connecticut, Damberg said he wouldn’t be able to continue his lifelong mission of making a living off his artistic talents.
When he looks back at his life’s work, Damberg said couldn’t discuss his biggest accomplishment. “It’s not my place to say how beat up a marble statue was when it came to me to repair it,” he said.
The unique relationship with his customers requires privacy, Damberg said. “It’s not something I can brag about. If they (customers) read in the paper how beat up their piece of art was before it came to me, they wouldn’t hire me for more stuff,” he said with a laugh.